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Turkey has one of the highest corona incidence values in the world. There are curfews all over the country, but Istanbul is teeming with tourists who love to shop; they are welcome for good reason.
By Oliver Mayer-Rüth, ARD-Studio Istanbul
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on television Monday night that the crown numbers were always transparent. This statement made many Turks sit up and take note: until November 25, the Ministry of Health only published the daily numbers of those seriously ill with Covid-19. As pressure mounted from doctors, scientists, and the public, the government adapted to the practice of most countries in the world and began publishing the number of people who tested positive every day. Since then, the number has been just over 30,000 new infections per day; consequently, Turkey is one of the countries with the highest incidence in the world.
On November 30, Erdogan pulled the rope and ordered nightly curfews between 9:00 pm and 5:00 am, and on weekends from Friday night to Monday morning. Similar to spring, people over 65 and under 20 can only go outside for a few hours a day.
The authoritarian head of government said in his speech on Monday that the positive effects of the restrictions can now be seen. He did not receive any specific data, but immediately announced that New Year’s Eve, which is sometimes excessively celebrated in Istanbul, will be canceled this year: Turks must stay at home from December 31 from 9:00 p.m. until the morning of January 4. Since January 1 is a public holiday and the following two days fall on weekends, the weekend block already practiced is extended by one day.
Tourists continue walking along the Istiklal
As in the spring, Erdogan takes the country’s economic situation firmly into account when taking steps to contain the virus. The state only posts positive numbers when it comes to the economy. According to the Turkish statistical office, unemployment was the lowest in 22 months at 12.7 percent in September and growth rose to an incredible 6.7 percent in the third quarter.
But observers are just as skeptical about these numbers as the very low daily corona cases, which until recently were supposed to suggest to the Turkish public and the world that everything was under control. The online newspaper “Duvar” quoted a Turkish trade unionist at the beginning of the week as saying that since the beginning of the pandemic, the statistics office’s calculations have lost all reference to reality.
Economic pressure is reflected on Istanbul’s Istiklal Street during the weekend curfew: tourists from Arab countries stroll alongside Russians and Ukrainians along the main shopping street in the European part of the metropolis.
In between, you can see men wearing headbands over and over again: hair transplants are in demand even in times of pandemic cosmetic surgery and Istanbul is a Mecca for hair transplants. Most of the Istiklal’s shops and some exchange offices are open on weekends despite the curfew.
State rental subsidies: a drop in the ocean
Turkey urgently needs foreign exchange and the income of the few tourists who, despite the pandemic, are not afraid to travel to the Bosphorus. Müberra Eresin, president of the Turkish Hotel Association, says that between 25 and 30 percent of hotel beds in Istanbul are currently occupied. Flights to Turkey are still possible.
The Turkish government apparently assumes, unlike most other countries in the world, that tourists from abroad are not a notable factor in containing the pandemic.
To reduce the losses of many smaller companies and businesses in the country, the president has promised more than one million merchants 1,000 Turkish liras a month for three months. That is a little more than 100 euros. Also, there is a rental subsidy of 750 lira, for many drops in the ocean, because according to an extrapolation from 2019, the average rent for the businesses in question is around 5000 lira per month.
Unlike other countries in Turkey, Erdogan is likely sticking to the “shutdown light.” A real blockade, as is happening today in Germany, apparently could not afford it to the country, despite the economic figures published by the statistical office, which seem brilliant.
